Why Tim Smith should resign from parliament over drink-driving shame

The fact shadow attorney-general Tim Smith tried to downplay his drink-driving incident the next day shows he doesn’t deserve to stay in parliament.

If you’re a little bit over when you drink and drive, you’re a bloody idiot.

If you’re a lot over, you’re a deadly menace who doesn’t deserve to be on the roads.

And if you blow 0.131 and then try to play it down, you don’t deserve to be a member of parliament.

Liberal Tim Smith had no choice but to resign from the shadow cabinet after he chose to get into his car and drive after drinking at a dinner with friends.

A man displaying so little respect for the law cannot be the shadow attorney-general.

Smith should now follow the advice he’s offered others in the same situation and resign as an MP.

The fact that he tried to downplay it the next day shows he doesn’t deserve to stay in parliament.

On Sunday, Smith issued a seven-line statement through the opposition press office that said he made a “serious error of judgment”.

“After dinner with friends I believed I was under the legal limit to drive home. This was not the case. I was breath-tested and returned a positive reading,” he said.

“I have been fined under the Road Safety Act and my licence has been suspended for 12 months.”

He apologised for his behaviour and resigned as shadow attorney-general.

Smith was seeking to downplay the dangerous – and potentially deadly – chain of events.

Blowing 0.06 or 0.07 is an error of judgment.

Driving while more than two times over the limit is not a minor mistake, it’s a criminal act with often deadly consequences.

In the statement there was no mention of the fact that Smith had blown 0.131.

Tim Smith’s car is towed from the scene in Hawthorn. Picture: Olivia and Charlotte Neish

Tim Smith in June. Picture: David Crosling

Or that he clipped another car and crashed into a fence on his way home.

Or that a child’s bedroom was just metres from the impact site.

Or that he appeared disoriented and was revving the car’s engine as he tried to drive backwards.

Or that his offending came amid a statewide police roads blitz coinciding with the lifting of restrictions.

As is often the way in politics, the cover-up can be much worse than the crime.

There is no way Smith could have believed he was under the limit, and to suggest he did is simply farcical.

On Monday Opposition Leader Matthew Guy was left to front the media alone because Smith was not even in Melbourne.

Guy said Smith had “done something that’s inexcusable”.

Then why is Guy allowing Smith to make excuses for his actions through the opposition press office?

On Monday, Guy said he would meet Smith in person “in the next 24 hours” to decide what his future would be.

This makes Guy look weak and indecisive.

He should have called for Smith’s resignation and demanded he return to Melbourne immediately to face the music.

After all, Guy called for Liberal MP Simon Ramsay to resign when he was caught drink-driving, so he can’t apply a different standard just because Smith is his mate.

The aftermath of the incident. Picture: Olivia and Charlotte Neish

The crash left a trail of damage.

It’s come at a bad time for the opposition, which was landing some damaging blows over the government’s pandemic powers legislation.

Twelve months out from an election and the opposition is now in disarray.

Not only is Guy dealing with Tim Smith, but Bernie Finn, who likened the Premier to a Nazi in a post on Facebook.

No doubt Guy is hoping Smith – one of his closest allies in parliament – will survive and return to the front bench after a year or so in the wilderness of the back bench.

This should not happen.

I know Smith well because he’s my local member.

He’s a good operator and a likeable bloke – the kind of person who isn’t afraid to speak his mind.

He’s only 38 and I am sure that in years to come he will have more to offer public life.

At the moment, though, he’s unfit to hold office and if he wants another chance he should get it from the people of Victoria, not his boss.

If Smith had fronted the media on Monday and taken full responsibility for his actions, then his electorate would have some faith that he understood what he’d done.

But playing it down in a statement shows he’s thinking more about his political future than the people he could have hurt or killed.

Back in 2019, Smith tweeted: “Will Fowles should resign. He clearly isn’t up to being a member of parliament. The people of Burwood deserve much better.”

Now, I am sorry to say, the people of Kew – and the rest of Victoria – deserve better than Tim Smith.

Originally published as Why Tim Smith should resign from parliament over drink-driving shame